Accused
by guardianM3
Summary: Charlie Clark has been accused of murdering a priest. Trent and Carlos are asked to help prove his innocence.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

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Chapter 1: Fresh Flowers

Trent Malloy sat in his blue Stingray Convertible as his azure eyes studied the peeling paint on the ranch house with the sagging porch. He frowned as he thought about how the house had gotten into such a state of disrepair.

He opened the door and got out of his car, lingering a few moments before he shut the door. He put his hands in the pockets of his black leather jacket and walked down the path of broken stepping-stones. He stopped a few feet from the steps that led onto the porch and to the front door.

It had been fifteen years since he had been in that house and had been several years since he had thought about the house. It had been a weekend home while the family had lived comfortably in a townhouse in the city during the week. He could still see the neatly trimmed grass, and the tall oak that had once graced the back yard.

The overgrown grass easily was as tall as his waist and the oak tree had fallen, its limbs lying dead. The carefully planted flowers and vibrant gardens had now vanished among the indifferent weeds.

The woods around the home had been an endless playground filled with exciting adventures and explorations. Now, it was an empty place surrounded by fallen limbs and rattlesnakes hiding in the tall grass and weeds.

He could picture the interior of the house that had family photos hanging in the hallways, and the living room, as well as the numerous tabletop frames that sat on the dressers in every bedroom. He remembered the flowers that had brought color and sweet fragrances into the house.

He tried to refrain from picturing the horror of the murdered couple who had raised their only son in that country home. He ran a hand through his blonde hair, trying to clear his mind of the realistic pictures that his imagination was providing for him.

Trent's cell phone rang and he sighed with relief, glad with the distraction from where his mind had taken him. He pulled the phone out of his pocket and when he looked at the caller id, he saw that it was his office manager Kim Sutter.

"Yeah, Kim?" Trent asked is voice sounding gruff.

"Hey, are you ok, Trent? You sound a little odd," Kim said her voice crackling a little over the cell phone.

Trent held back a sigh, knowing that if Kim had heard it she would know that something was wrong. "Everything's fine, Kim. What's going on?"

"All right, then," Kim replied with obvious skepticism in her voice, "Carlos used one of his contacts to track down Gus Sullivan. Carlos wants you to meet him at the club called the Hollow."

Gus Sullivan had jumped bail and the cops had failed to find him. Thunder Investigations had been hired by Steven Miles to capture Sullivan since he had stolen Mr. Miles' identity as well has hundreds of thousands of dollars from him. There was also a nice reward from the police if anyone brought him in.

"Thanks, Kim. I'll be there," Trent replied as he tried to have his voice into a more cheerful tone. He could tell within a second that he had failed to do so and knew that Kim was going to be concerned and try to find out why he had been distracted for the past couple of weeks.

"Ok," Kim replied tartly and hung up.

Trent closed his cell phone, let out a sigh and looked at the house once more. He couldn't help but think about if he had done one little thing differently that the tragedy could have been prevented.

He couldn't displace the guilt that he had carried for so many years. It didn't matter how much he tried to make up for it because he could never forget what had happened fifteen years ago.

He turned away from the house and got into his car. He stared at the house for a moment and then ran his hand through his sunshine colored hair. As he turned the key and started the ignition, he couldn't help but wonder what kind of fresh flowers would have been filling the air with their sweet scent today if things had been different.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

guardianM3: I tried to post this by Saturday, but I guess one day late isn't too bad. Please read and review.

Chapter 2: Not Without a Fight

Carlos Sandoval checked his watch for the fifth time waiting for his partner to show up. He leaned against his Durango and crossed his arms. He checked his watch again, slightly exasperated that only a minute had passed since his last check. He wondered what was taking Trent so long and debated whether to give his friend a call to find out his ETA.

He watched with steady, espresso colored eyes as a couple stepped out of the Hollow which was supposedly the roughest punk rock club in town. He wasn't surprised to see that the man sported spiky flame colored hair and the woman walking next to him had on thick, knee-high black boots and chains dangling from her belt.

The sign for the Hollow was hanging lopsided and Carlos couldn't tell if that had been the owner's intent or if it had been damaged and never repaired. He thought it was more likely that it had been intentional. The siding was black but the trim around the doorway and the black curtained windows was a blood red.

He checked his watch and debated whether to bang his head on his Durango or not. Instead, his mind went to a person whom he didn't want to think about anymore, but every time he tried to distract himself, his mind betrayed him and it went to a clear and radiant image of Angela.

Carlos knew that he had been the one who had messed up in the relationship. He felt that he could have settled down with Angela but then he had to mess it up by playing hard to get. It had been a childish game and he had lost, leading him to a few months of lonely and self-pitying nights.

He sighed when he saw a familiar blue car down the street. He waited until the blue car parked next to his Durango before he straightened and uncrossed his arms. He felt relief fill him as the image of Angela faded away, as well as the feelings that had been hindering him from moving on.

Carlos waited for Trent to get out of his car before he said anything. "Hey, what took you so long?"

Trent shrugged his shoulders in reply and Carlos knew that Trent didn't want to talk about it. Carlos coughed and pointed at the Hollow asking silently if Trent was ready to go in.

"Let's head in," Trent said as he closed his car door with a slam.

Carlos looked at the leather jacket and jeans that Trent was wearing, to the jeans and long sleeved red shirt that he had on and said, "We won't blend in."

"Hey, since when do we ever really blend in?" Trent asked.

"Good point," Carlos said with grin as he followed Trent into the club.

Carlos allowed his eyes to adjust in the dimly lit club and wondered how people didn't bump into each other or the furniture. The only area that was clearly lit up was the stage which had a live band playing music that he thought was something between gothic and punk.

Carlos didn't know if they could find Sullivan in the darkness but then Trent tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey, Carlos, he's standing next to the stage," Trent said as he indicated the direction with the tilt of his head.

Carlos turned his body slightly to take a look trying to make it seem as though he wasn't looking it that particular direction. He didn't want Sullivan to notice them.

Carlos saw Sullivan standing next to the stage as Trent had told him. Carlos could easily see that Sullivan wore a black leather coat and black leather pants with chains. He looked as though he was a tree and that a dog had wrapped its chain around his legs.

As Carlos followed Trent in the direction of the stage, he tried not to bump into anyone. Carlos almost ran into Trent when he abruptly stopped. Carlos frowned and looked over Trent's shoulder to see why his friend had stopped moving towards Sullivan.

Carlos could barely make out the features of a girl that was standing in front of them even though she was wearing glow in the dark bracelets and necklaces. Carlos couldn't determine if the girl's hair was jet black or a dark blue.

"You two want anything to drink?" A girl asked as she stood in front of them balancing a tray of empty glasses in her right hand.

"No, thank you," Trent replied giving her a charming smile.

The girl rolled her eyes and headed to a table whose party had just left for the dance floor.

Trent started to walk forward but this time Carlos kept his distance so that there was some space in between them.

Carlos knew that bringing Sullivan in wasn't going to be easy but he hoped that he at least wouldn't get punched in the face this time.

Carlos was relieved that they had finally reached the stage and Sullivan. Trent tapped Sullivan on the shoulder.

Sullivan spun around and glared at them as though he was ready to spit venom in their faces.

"Whatever you want, I don't care, so you had better get outta here," Sullivan turned back to the stage, but he remained at an angle so that Trent and Carlos were clearly within his line of vision.

"Gus Sullivan, we are placing you under civilian arrest," Trent said loud enough so that only Sullivan would hear.

Carlos watched as Sullivan turned to face them with his scarred hands formed into tight fists.

Carlos sighed recognizing how Sullivan had obtained those scars. "Look, can we just take you in without any hassle because I would like to have at least one day without a fight." Carlos dodged a blow to the right side of his face, "I guess not."

Carlos avoided the rapid punches that flew towards him as he kept his sight on Sullivan's movements, waiting for the perfect time to strike. He saw out of the corner of his eye, Trent standing off to the side watching and waiting for Carlos to capture Sullivan.

Carlos feinted right and when Sullivan went for it, Carlos threw a punch at Sullivan's chin. "What are you doing here anyway, Gus?" Carlos asked as he grabbed the dazed man's arms so he couldn't throw another punch.

"Not bad, Carlos," Trent said his grin visible in the stage light.

The music stopped just as Carlos was about to comment. He felt all of the eyes in the room focusing on the stage and on him.

"Hey, where are you going with my Dad?" A girl with purple streaks in her long blonde hair and a red eyebrow ring asked as she stepped off of the stage, her guitar clutched tightly in her hands.

"Uh, he's going to jail?" Carlos answered not liking the anger in the girl's piercing green eyes.

"I don't think so!" The girl yelled as she kicked Carlos in the shin, avoiding her father's leg by an inch then she turned and swung her guitar at Trent.

Trent jumped back and avoided the guitar but wasn't prepared for the torrent of guitar swinging that the girl forced upon him.

Carlos saw the guitar slam against Trent's cheek, sending him backwards several steps, almost tumbling to the floor, but with the years of his marital arts training he remained on his feet.

With a swift movement of his feet, he avoided another hit from the guitar and he managed to grab the guitar and take it out of the girl's hands. The girl, not ready to give up, ran at Trent her arms poised to strike. Trent tossed the guitar, deftly grabbed the girl by the arm, and spun her around so he could hold on to both of her wrists.

"That is enough, my little Pixie," Sullivan said sadly but with praise in his voice. "They have me, fair and square."

Pixie nodded her head and Trent released her when she stopped struggling. Trent followed the limping Carlos this time, keeping a wary eye on the girl who hadn't moved since her father had asked her to stop.

Carlos placed Sullivan in his Durango and shut the door, knowing that Sullivan wasn't going to try and escape.

"We are not going to tell Kim about Sullivan's daughter, right?" Carlos asked turning to Trent as he rubbed his shin noting that his friend had a fine purple bruise on his cheek.

Trent nodded and asked with concern in his eyes, "Are you all right, Carlos?"

"Yeah, I'm fine but I'm just glad I didn't get punched in the face. I think I should train with you some more."

"That would be wise," Trent replied as headed toward his car.

"Yeah, it would," Carlos replied watching Trent get into his car and start the engine. As he got into his vehicle, he didn't know if it would be wise to ask Trent why he had been so distracted lately, but as his best friend, he had a duty to find out what was wrong.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

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Chapter 3: Accused

It was eight thirty in the morning and the sun had already started turning the Texas summer day into a scorcher. He could feel the beads of sweat dripping from his dull brown hair. He pulled his badge out of his pocket and flashed it at the officer holding back the curious neighbors and the news vultures.

He lifted up the yellow tape and went towards the doorway that was being blocked by two officers. As he looked around the surprisingly clean soup kitchen, he was met by a patrolman of the Dallas Police Department.

"Detective Ryan?" The patrolman asked.

"Yes, _Officer_ Griffin," he replied having read the name off of the man's badge, "I am _Detective_ Ryan."

Officer Griffin merely nodded and pointed toward the officer in charge.

Ryan walked to the officer that Griffin had pointed to and wasn't surprised that it turned out to be Officer Masterson, a more experienced officer who didn't have any interest in becoming a detective. Ryan believed that there was something wrong with the man.

"Detective Ryan," Masterson greeted with a nod of his head.

Ryan looked around the room taking note of the other people standing around within the crime scene. He hoped that none of them had ruined the evidence. "What do we have so far?"

"That is Ms. Jackie Foreman, she found that guy leaning over the body," Masterson said as he indicated with his chin to a woman with shoulder length red hair and then the man wearing a gray overcoat.

"Bring him in," Ryan ordered as he turned and left the building. He didn't have to be a genius to know that Griffin had rolled his eyes once Ryan had turned his back. He didn't care what those within his department thought about him, he was a detective and he had a job to do.

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Detective Ryan looked at the wretched man sitting at the table with his hands handcuffed together before him. Ryan thought the man should have been hosed down before being placed in the small interrogation room that absorbed odors like a sponge.

Ryan closed his nose to the endless unpleasant smells around him and focused his attention on the man sitting in the chair. He had already read the report from the officer on scene and he had questioned the witness that had found the bum next to the body. Now, all he needed was a quick confession so it would be a tightly knit closed case.

"I'm going to turn on the recorder and when I tell you to, you will state your name, your address, if you have one and your occupation, again if you have one." Ryan turned on the recorder and stated the date, time, the location, his name and his rank.

"All right, your turn," Ryan said as he pointed his finger at the bum and then at the recorder.

"My…my name is Charlie Clark. I don't have an address, except the abandoned place that I sleep. The address is…uh…"

"All right, fine, you live on the street," Ryan said not even bothering to hold back his irritated tone.

"I don't live on the street. I have a place," Charlie argued.

Ryan sighed knowing that the man sitting across from him would lead him into an endless loop of a mindless argument. "Never mind that, let's get to the questions," Ryan said.

"What you were doing at the soup kitchen?"

"I went to see Father Darren. I was upset with him before because he…he didn't understand."

"Seems like he didn't understand the second time you spoke with him, so you killed him," Ryan said keeping his voice as calm as possible so he would make the bum feel comfortable enough to let something slip, like a confession.

"No, no I just went there to speak with him. I don't…don't remember what happened after that," Charlie's deer brown eyes filled with tears.

Ryan didn't speak for a few minutes as he just gave the bum his you-are-guilty-and-I-know-it stare.

Ryan pulled back his stare for a moment and placed his hands on the table, leaning forward just enough to intimidate but not to get the smell of the bum on his clothing. "So, you got into an argument with Father Darren, he disagrees with you and you killed him."

Ryan waited for a moment for the bum to stop sniffling and mumbling before he continued. "We have a witness and you were found next to the body. What do you say to that?"

"Please Officer, I didn't…didn't kill him," Charlie pleaded.

"Oh right. The story is you just woke up with the murder weapon next to your hand and you saw the body. Ms. Foreman walked in, screamed at you about what you had done and called an ambulance and the cops. Right. Spending your begging money on booze, wino?" Detective Ryan sneered.

Charlie looked around the room for a moment and shook is head. "I don't…I don't drink."

Ryan scoffed at the thought that the unkempt man didn't drink. Forensics had taken the bum's clothes as evidence and had provided the man with a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt. True, the homeless man didn't currently reek of booze, but Ryan would bet a month's worth of pay that the man was a drunk.

"Yes, well, whatever you say. Forensics is going to look at your clothes and your DNA. Then we'll see if you killed Father Darren or not."

"Can I…can I go?" Charlie asked.

"No, I'm going to place you in a cell for a couple of days, unless you can get out on bail."

Ryan shut off the recorder and looked at Charlie. "I think a few days in jail might make you see the benefits of telling me the truth."

Ryan pocketed the recorder and left the room closing the door on the crying bum. He walked up to Officer Masterson and told him to book the bum. He went to his desk to start on his paperwork and to wait until he received news from autopsy and forensics. He knew he had the murderer and it wouldn't be long before he had all of the evidence to place the bum in jail.

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guardianM3: Please review. I know this chapter is a little short, but I hope my writing is a lot better than it used to be.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

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Chapter 4: Return

She opened the door and stepped into the bar Uppercuts, pulling on the strap of a tote bag that hung off her shoulder. It only contained a few books, but it felt as though she was carrying twenty bricks. She didn't know if it was the books that made her feel that way or if it was because she was starting a new life.

As her eyes adjusted to the slightly darker environment, she was still amazed at what the impression the bar had made on her the first time she had stepped through the door. Of course, when she had first walked in, there had been a bar fight going on.

She glanced around noting that it was quite interesting to see the bar decorated like a boxing ring, with boxing ring ropes used as a guardrail between the first and second levels of the bar. There was a giant blue star for the Dallas Cowboys blazing behind the bar. She was getting a bit distracted taking in the images when someone stepped into her line of vision.

"Hi, Nancy," a man with dark hair greeted with a wide grin as he motioned with his arms to take a seat at a table that already had two people sitting in the booth. One was a blonde haired man the same age as the one with dark hair, and a woman with reddish hair placed in an intricate hair design that Nancy had no idea how it didn't get tangled into knots.

"Oh, hi," Nancy replied with a smile and a thoughtful crease in her forehead as she tried to remember his name. It had been several weeks since she had seen him. She felt terrible that she couldn't remember his name, but she hoped that he wouldn't be upset. A lot had happened to her in the past month.

After her mother had died from cancer, she had discovered a letter that her mother had written revealing the identity of her father. Her fiancé Lyle had been transferred from California to Texas where her father lived. It seemed like it was a sign, but there were circumstances surrounding the transfer. Lyle had discovered that the company he had been working for had falsified reports that would put soldiers at risk. He had made copies of the reports and was going to bring down the company by giving the information to the FBI.

Unknown to Lyle, his company discovered that he had made copies and had made certain that he would not bring them down. They had intercepted his call to the FBI and sent their own agents to kill him. They had not only killed him, but they had erased his identity as quickly as a flash flood. Then, they had come after her seeking the disk that contained copies of the reports.

She returned to the present, deciding that she didn't want to go through those painful and frightening memories again. She returned to the man standing before her, trying to remember his name, but it would not come.

The man returned the smile and nodded his head. "You don't remember my name, do you?"

"Yes of course I do. Your name is Carl, right?" Nancy's grin faded into an apologetic look.

His grin faded. "It's Carlos."

Nancy looked at the man and woman sitting in the booth. "Right, sorry. And you're Trent and Kim."

She heard Carlos mumble something which she knew figured had to do with forgetting his name, but remembering the names of his friends.

Butch McMann, owner of Uppercuts and Nancy's father walked over to them and stood before his daughter. It seemed strange to Nancy that she now had a father when she had just her mother for all those years. She could feel the sadness creeping to her heart once more, but she pushed it away, weary of the loss of loved ones.

"Sweetheart, I didn't realize you'd be coming by today," Butch said as hugged her.

Nancy returned his hug. "I can't come and see my father?"

"Of course you can. I just didn't expect you for a couple of days until you settled into your apartment."

"Why don't you sit down?" Kim said as she took Nancy's bag from her hand and motioned for her to sit next to her.

"So, you decided to stay in Dallas?" Trent asked as he took a sip of beer from the bottle.

Nancy turned and looked at Trent who had large shadows under his eyes which distracted her from the bruise on his cheek.

"Trent, are you ok? What happened?" Nancy asked concern filling her for a man who had saved her life more than once.

"Yeah, I got this from making a citizen's arrest," Trent said as he brushed his fingers over the dark bruise.

"Oh." Nancy sensed that there was something bothering Trent and she knew that it had nothing to do with the bruise.

"Did you find a nice place?" Kim asked as she twirled her straw in her glass of Sprite.

Nancy couldn't help but notice that Kim was looking at Trent with concern and what she believed looked like disapproval. "Yeah, Butch helped me find a place. I didn't have too much to bring in so it didn't take very long."

"That's great. You'll just have to let us know what you need when you throw a housewarming party," Kim said with a beaming grin.

Nancy returned a smile, though it wasn't as large as the one Kim had given her, but she tried. She wasn't used to having this much attention focused on her and she didn't know how she felt about it. She knew that it would take some time to adjust to this new life in Texas with a father and new friends.

Nancy looked at Butch noticing that he didn't seem a little bit fazed from having called him Butch and not Dad. She didn't know how she felt calling him Dad just yet. After all, she had only found him a month ago and he had only found out that he even _had_ a daughter. She knew that it was going to take some time for both of them to really get used to the idea.

She joined in the conversation now and again, but she mostly listened trying to discern if any of them knew what was going on with Trent. It didn't take long to realize that they were all concerned for Trent and they had no idea what was bothering him. As she took a sip from her glass of water, she wondered if Trent would let one or all of them in on the mystery before he became even more withdrawn.

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guardianM3: Please review. I apologize for the wait and I hope that my writer's block is over.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

guardianM3: Please review.

Chapter 5: Daniel

Carlos folded the paper intricately, forming straight, neat edges so it would be symmetrical. He took his time preparing the paper, making certain that everything was smooth. He lifted the result and held it in his hand, proud at what he had accomplished. He pulled back his arm and sent the paper airplane flying.

He watched as the paper airplane flew out of his office and turn towards the direction of Kim's desk. Carlos jumped out of his chair and headed toward the door hoping that his airplane wouldn't…

"Carlos!" Kim screamed.

Carlos swore underneath his breath knowing that Kim was going to get back at him. "Sorry, Kim," Carlos said as he cautiously glanced out and watched as Kim pulled the airplane out of her hair and crushed it between her hands.

Carlos gave Kim his goofy, apologetic grin. She just glared at him.

Carlos' grin faded and he coughed to clear his throat. "Anyone call today? Any new cases?"

"No," Kim replied sharply as she threw the former airplane into the wastebasket.

Kim looked up at Carlos with her eyes fierce and determined. Carlos waited for the verbal blow, but was surprised to see Kim's eyes and face soften.

"So, do you know why Trent has been so distant lately?" Kim asked making it seem as though it was a simple question.

Carlos sighed having wondered the same thing for the past couple of weeks. Trent's demeanor had changed so subtly that it had taken awhile for Carlos to even notice that something was bothering Trent. He had started to notice that Trent had been distancing himself from him, from Kim, from Butch and even his family. He waited for Trent to come and talk to him, but it seems that he had waited a little too long.

Carlos was about to answer when he heard footsteps on the outside steps. He recognized those steps and he told Kim that they would talk about it later.

Trent stepped into the office, his eyes surrounded by shadows looking as though he had been on a 48-hour stakeout. His clothing was wrinkled and there was more than a dusting of whiskers on his face.

"Morning, Trent," Kim said beaming him a smile.

Carlos wondered if Trent even noticed that Kim was barely holding herself back from asking him a million questions. He wondered how long it would take before Kim's curiosity broke through the dam she had built.

Trent just nodded his head and headed toward his office. Carlos saw a mixture of anger and concern cross on Kim's face, so he quickly stepped up to her and took her by the shoulder. He shook his head, knowing how difficult and strenuous this entire situation was on both of them.

He waited for Trent to close the door before he whispered to Kim, "Not yet."

"This waiting until he's ready to talk is taking too long," Kim whispered back.

Carlos was about to agree when he heard someone coming up the stairs. He hoped that Walker was the one coming up those stairs so he could talk to Trent or perhaps knock Trent out of his bad mood.

When the door opened, he was disappointed that it wasn't Walker but he was surprised at the person who stepped into Thunder Investigations.

Daniel, a homeless man, that Carlos had met a few years ago, stood in front of the door. He wore worn clothing, but it was clean, his familiar black and red cap was placed backwards on his head. "Hello, Carlos."

Carlos looked from Kim to Daniel and realized that Kim and Daniel had never met. "This is Kim Sutter, our office manager. Kim, this is Daniel."

"Miss Sutter," Daniel acknowledged with a polite nod of his head.

Kim returned the nod and with a smile. "Kim will be fine."

Carlos had a feeling that it wasn't just a visit and he debated whether to get Trent or not but before he could make a move toward the office door, it opened and Trent stepped out.

"I take it you remember Trent?" Carlos asked Daniel.

Daniel nodded his head solemnly. "Hello Trent." Trent replied with a nod of his head as he leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest.

"How have you been doing, Daniel?" Carlos asked as he shook the man's hand realizing that the room had become so quiet that they could make out the voices from Butch's bar downstairs.

"Been about the same, but we do have a mutual friend that needs your help."

Carlos jumped back to a few years ago when he had been undercover for four months, trying to bust a drug ring with a leader named "El Vaquero". He had been discovered as a detective and had been led into a trap. He had been beaten and when he had escaped their clutches, he had been shot while jumping out of a window.

Charlie Clark had found him and brought him to the homeless encampment where he had lived. Earlier, Carlos and Trent had rescued Charlie from a group of men who had claimed that Charlie had stolen a car radio Charlie promised that somehow that he would repay the favor and he did, by saving Carlos' life.

Carlos started to feel guilty because he hadn't visited the homeless encampment in several weeks. He would bring them food, clothing and other necessities every chance to that he had. Over time, he had gotten to know each individual. He knew it was a hard life for them, and he tried to help them as much as he could. Even though they had lost so much, they still had their pride.

"Charlie's in trouble. He's been arrested for murder."

Carlos blinked a few times as he absorbed the words and to let is brain to interpret the words for him. "Charlie?"

"Yes but I can assure you that Charlie wouldn't harm anyone. You know that Carlos."

"Yeah, I'm just…shocked."

"The others and I would like to hire you to prove Charlie's innocence. I know we don't have any money, but we would be willing to do some work in return."

Carlos looked at Kim, knowing how she felt about freebies, especially since they had just barely escaped having to close down. It was due to a reward from the IRS that had brought them out of the red, but they had to make sure that they didn't end up there again.

Kim nodded her head, giving her consent on the case. Carlos was a little surprised that Kim didn't want to talk to him and Trent on the side, but he decided to take that as a blessing for not being yelled at again. Carlos looked at Trent who merely nodded his head.

"Of course we'll help Charlie," Carlos said giving the older man his cocky, reassuring smile.

Daniel bowed his head. "Thank you. Charlie would never harm anyone, he is a gentle soul."

"I know." Carlos looked at Trent and saw that sad look in his eyes. He wondered when he would have the time to talk to Trent.

When Daniel left, Trent and Carlos decided that the first step was to visit Charlie and find out what happened.

Trent and Carlos walked into the prison; both were surprised when they saw Detective Ryan walking towards them. Without having to see Ryan's face, Carlos knew that a confrontation was about to occur. He just wondered who would win this round.

"What are you two doing here?" Ryan asked glaring at the two of them.

"We came to speak with someone. Do you have a problem with that, Ryan?" Trent said with venom.

Carlos was stunned at Trent's tone but Ryan didn't seem to notice.

Ryan shook his head angrily. "Let me guess, you two bozos are visiting that murdering homeless man that I've arrested."

Carlos breaking out of his stunned state rolled his eyes. "Gee Ryan, your detective skills are getting better every day. There is one thing that you are wrong about though."

"Oh yeah, and what's that Sandoval?" Ryan asked his nostrils flaring as he pointed his finger at Carlos.

"Charlie Clark is not a murderer, so you have the wrong person in jail." Carlos bore his eyes into Ryan's knowing that if he looked away, Ryan would believe he had won.

"Right," Ryan said with sarcasm. "You two had better not interfere in this case or I'll have you both locked up for obstructing justice."

"Believe me Ryan; we would never get in the way of justice," Trent replied, his voice not as rough as before, but Carlos could still hear a drip or two of venom.

Ryan gave them one last warning glare before he turned around and left.

Carlos waited for Ryan to be well out of hearing before he spoke. "I hope he doesn't interfere with our investigation," Carlos said with a sigh.

"Yeah," Trent replied as he motioned for Carlos to go first.

As Carlos and Trent went through the motions of the jail, Carlos thought about how Charlie could have been accused of murder. It wasn't in Charlie's nature to be violent except maybe to defend someone else, but it would never result in Charlie truly harming another human being. Carlos didn't believe that Charlie even liked anything physical like boxing or football; he probably enjoyed baseball or golf.

As Carlos continued to think about the murder, he hadn't realized that they had made it until he almost ran into the guard that had been leading them. Their guide used his radio to ask another guard to unlock the door. A buzzer sounded as the door opened, revealing a room with a table and four chairs, all bolted to the floor. Across from the door, that they had entered was another door. The guard motioned for them to enter and when they did, he shut the door behind them.

Carlos and Trent had to wait for only a couple of minutes before Charlie was led into the room from the prisoner's entrance. He was wearing the typical orange jumpsuit and his hands were cuffed in front of him. Carlos was glad that the guards hadn't placed his legs in chains as well.

Charlie looked up and saw the two PIs. "Carlos, Trent, I'm glad to see you two. I just wish you didn't have to see me in a place like this."

The guard motioned for Charlie to sit and when he did, the guard went to stand next to the door, his eyes staring straight ahead at the wall behind Carlos and Trent.

Carlos was glad to see that Charlie's face relaxed a little when he spoke to them. He was concerned about how prison would affect Charlie. Trent and Carlos took a seat across from Charlie.

"Daniel told us that you were here. We're going to get you out of here, Charlie," Carlos promised.

"Can you tell us what happened?" Trent asked.

Charlie clenched his fists and then opened them. He stared at the table for a few more seconds before he looked up at the two PIs. "Father Darren and I were talking about my home. He wanted everyone to move into one of those houses that are set up for people like me. I didn't…didn't want to leave my home."

"Did you two get into a heated argument?" Carlos asked keeping his thoughts to himself.

"Yes, but I went back later to apologize." Charlie's eyes and voice revealed a level of uncertainty. "I saw him…then everything got out of focus."

"What do you mean?" Carlos asked.

"I don't remember anything else until I woke up. I was next to Father Darren's body and to Miss Foreman's screaming. That's…that's all that I remember." Charlie looked away, his face fallen into despair.

Carlos saw the look that Trent gave him. It seemed that Charlie had had some sort of blackout, but Carlos knew that Charlie never drank alcohol.

Carlos reached out his hand, but remembered that there was a rule of no touching. He tapped his knuckles softly on the table instead to get Charlie's attention. "Don't worry, Charlie, Trent and I will figure this out and prove your innocence."

Trent and Carlos left the prison both in their own thoughts. When they reached the parking lot and were not that far off from Carlos' Durango, Carlos was the one who spoke first.

"We need to speak with Miss Foreman."

Trent just nodded his head as he continued toward the Durango. Carlos could tell that working with Trent on this case wasn't going to be easy. He wondered if he should tell Trent to go on a vacation and he could work the case solo. He sighed knowing that Trent wasn't about to go anywhere even though he seemed to be gone most of the time, even if it was only in his mind.

As Carlos pulled his keys out of his pocket, he decided that if Trent didn't start talking in a day, he was going to get his partner to talk. If that didn't work, he could always call Walker and have the Ranger talk to Trent. He knew that the Ranger would be able to bring Trent back if he couldn't do the job.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off it.

* * *

guardianM3: I apologize for the late chapter. I've had many things come up this past year, but I am going to try to work harder on all of my fanfics.

* * *

Chapter 6: Regrets

Butch held the glass carefully in his hands as he dried it with a towel. As his eyes roamed the room, he was surprised that the bar was so quiet for a Friday night. He was thankful for the calm because he had too much on his mind and the quiet allowed him to think.

He could see that the sun was about to drop behind the horizon which would cause the city to be lit up with artificial light. He turned his head to watch as his patrons chattered and drank amongst themselves. On occasion, some of them would grab a handful of nuts or they would eat some hot wings. The television was off since there was not a game on that night and no one had asked to have it on.

When he heard the door open, he saw Kim step into the room and waited for her to come to the bar. She hopped onto the bar stool and flashed Butch a smile that didn't seem as enthusiastic as usual.

Butch smiled faintly at her as he filled a glass with Kim's favorite soda and set it down in front of her. He knew that she wanted to talk and with Kim, it wouldn't take long for her to begin.

Butch continued to dry glasses as Kim swirled the ice in her drink with the straw before she took a sip. "What's wrong, Butch? You haven't seemed like yourself lately."

"It's just an unusually quiet night, Kim," he said as he picked up another glass to dry.

"Yeah, I noticed that about the bar tonight." Kim paused and pointed at Butch with her finger, "And about you."

Butch shrugged his shoulders as he put the dried glass away. "It just seems to be one of those nights."

"More like a one of those weeks for everyone," Kim replied as she took a sip of her soda.

Butch nodded, knowing that Kim was talking about Trent. Butch had seen Trent slowly withdraw from them. It had happened so gradually that it had taken a nearly a week to notice that Trent wasn't himself. He hadn't spoken to any of them about why he was distancing himself from his friends.

"You're thinking about Nancy, aren't you?" Kim asked as she let go of the straw.

Butch watched the straw bounce around in Kim's glass until it stopped moving and he looked at Kim. "Yes."

"Let me guess, how you were never there for her when she was a kid and how you have no idea how she truly feels about it." Butch didn't miss the look of sympathy in Kim's face.

Butch sighed. "You're right, Kim. I'm lost. It's as if I've had so many punches to the head that I can't see straight."

"Butch, it's normal. Nancy came into your life at a time that you had everything figured out. You have the bar, you help with cases on occasion and you have your friends. This is a big event in your life and it's a good one."

"I don't regret that Nancy is in my life. I do regret that I never got to teach her how to ride a bike or to see her go on her first date. I've missed so much of her life that I don't know how I will make it up to her."

"Well, Butch, I think that what you're doing is right. You are spending time with her now and she knows that you are here for her. But, you have to realize that she hasn't had a father in her life before so it's going to take some time to adjust."

"Yeah. Eunice was right about me back then. I wasn't ready to be father, not when I was focused on my boxing that I didn't have time for anyone or anything but my dream. I wasn't ready to be a father then but I'm sure that I am now."

As Butch met Kim's eyes, he could tell that she didn't believe that he though he was ready to be a father.

Butch sighed. "Ok, I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a father or if I will make a good one."

"Butch, I've seen you with Nancy and you are wonderful with her. Of course, it's going to take time to build up the father-daughter relationship but I know that you and she will be great."

Butch heard the creaking of the door as it opened and he glanced over to see who entered. He saw a younger version of a woman he had loved many years ago step into the bar. He noted the subtle differences between the young woman standing before him and the one he had known. He wondered if some of those differences he saw were from him. He grinned broadly, as his daughter gave them a wave and walked up to the bar.

"It's so quiet tonight," Nancy said as she took a seat next to Kim.

"Yeah, that's just what Butch and I was talking about," Kim said before she Butch for a refill on her soda.

The conversation turned toward the places in Dallas that Nancy should visit. He was glad that Kim hadn't started to try to meddle in the relationship with his daughter. Not yet, anyway because he knew it would just be a matter of time.

* * *

Butch locked the door behind him and pocketed the key. He put his hands in the pockets of his jacket as he began to walk down the street.

As each step brought him closer to home, his mind shifted from his own turmoil to Trent's unusual demeanor. Butch knew that Carlos and Kim were concerned about Trent especially if it would affect his job.

There could be half a dozen reasons for Trent's behavior to change, but Butch didn't believe that any of the ones that had crossed his mind fit. He would have to wait for Trent to tell him. If the wait were too long, Butch would have to have a long chat with Trent.

As he stepped into his house and turned on the lights, he wondered if life would slow down enough so he could truly relax. However, he realized, that would be the end of the adventure and the excitement of life and therefore, it wouldn't be living at all. He just hoped that whatever was bothering Trent, would make itself known so that Trent could return to living his life.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

guardianM3: Sorry about the long wait. I had a busy year. I hope you will enjoy this chapter.

* * *

Chapter 7: Witness

Trent shut the car door and followed Carlos toward the soup kitchen. He looked at the two-story brick building. He could see inside due to the large windows, with a few hanging pots of indoor plants gave a glimpse of a modest entranceway. Trent looked at the sign and saw that the name of the soup kitchen was _The Holy Kitchen_.

He glanced over to the right of the soup kitchen and saw the large Catholic Church next-door standing like a protective shield over the humble soup kitchen, but he realized that its divine presence had not prevented the murder of a priest.

He thought about how the church and the kitchen were supposed to be sanctuaries; places to feel warm and safe. These places had been built to keep out the darkness that would sweep people up and take them away. Whether searching for food, faith, hope, forgiveness these places were there to keep you safe. Sometimes, the darkness would find its way in.

He allowed his dreary thoughts to dispel as he followed Carlos into the dining hall where several long tables stood with red and white checkered tablecloths. The few dozen chairs were just the simple folding ones, but those who ran the kitchen tried to make it as comfortable as possible. Paintings of grand landscapes and city skylines filled the walls. Vases of fresh flowers were set at every table. Trent could smell the lemony cleaner that had been used to clean the scarred tile floor.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" Carlos called out.

A woman with graying hair walked out of an open doorway a broom in her hands. "I'm sorry, but we are not open."

"We are just looking for someone." Trent replied noting the whiteness of the woman's knuckles.

The woman raised an eyebrow and looked at them suspiciously. "Who are you?"

Trent smiled softly hoping that the woman would relax. "I'm Trent Malloy and this is Carlos Sandoval."

The woman studied them a moment before she answered. "I'm Bess. I run the kitchen here."

Trent saw Carlos give her his best smile. "We're looking for Jackie Foreman."

Bess looked them over one more time. "Well, the poor child is a mess. Having to see Father Darren like that…it's just awful."

"We need to speak with her."

Trent could see Bess looking them over again and probably wondering if they were reporters.

"The police have already questioned all of us. We don't want any nosy reporters around. The poor girl has been through enough. We _all_ have been through enough."

"Bess, I can assure you that we are not reporters. We're private investigators."

"Private investigators? What exactly are you investigating? The police have caught the killer."

"We were hired to find out the truth," Trent said.

"The truth is that the homeless man killed Father Darren."

"Look, our client just wants to make certain that the police have the right killer." Carlos replied his tone telling Trent that he was getting impatient.

Trent could tell by her narrowed eyes and frown that she was still skeptical of them. He was about to try a different tactic when Bess lifted the broom and pointed it at Trent.

"Wait a minute. Did you say that your last name is Malloy? You're Thunder's son?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

Beth lowered the room and her voice turned soft. "Well, I knew Thunder a little. He was a great man."

Trent saw Carlos take a step back and knew that he would have to get the information that they needed. "We just want to ask Miss Foreman a few questions."

"Jackie's not here. She's at home."

"Ok. May we please have her address?"

Bess hesitated for a moment before she nodded. "I'll be right back."

"I wonder if it might have been easier just to call Kim and ask her to find Miss Foreman's address," Carlos said once Bess had left the room.

"She is unlisted. Kim would've had to hack into some database to get the information."

"Right, that's a good point. I wish that we could get a look at that crime scene."

"We will, but we have to find out what kind of information the police already have. We'll have to get the autopsy report and crime scene photos. Do you think you can manage that, Carlos?"

"I still have some connections, Trent. The only problem is that Ryan is head of the investigation."

"I have no doubt that you'll get the information."

Carlos opened his mouth to respond, but Bess walked into the room, a piece of paper clutched in her hand.

Bess handed Trent the piece of paper with an address and phone number written in a flowery script and careful not to writing over the colorful butterflies in one corner.

Trent looked at Bess. "Could we ask you a couple more questions?"

"Yes, I suppose so," Bess replied

"Do you know of anyone who didn't like Father Darren?"

Bess shook her head. "Everyone loved Father Darren. He is…was a kind man. He listened with his heart and helped those who needed it. He was a true man of God."

"But he probably had trouble with people who didn't care for the rules about the kitchen," Trent prodded watching her face closely.

Bess nodded somewhat reluctantly. "Yes, he would have words with some homeless man who was drunk or causing a ruckus. It happened on occasion but he was always so kind, yet firm and there never seemed to be much trouble after he spoke with them."

"Anyone else? Perhaps a member of the church that had an issue with him?"

"Not that I know of."

Trent could tell that Bess didn't have any other information for them. "Of course. Thank you for your help."

"You're welcome. Take care."

Trent followed Carlos out of the door wondering if they would ever be able to shed some light on the case.

"She wasn't much help," Carlos said as he unlocked the car.

"She got gave us the address," Trent said as he waved the slip of paper in the air.

"Yes, and we will see if it will lead to something useful."

"All right, Carlos. Let's go speak to Miss Jackie Foreman."

* * *

They parked in the driveway of a small ranch house with two large pots of flowers on either side of the modest porch. The siding on the house was a faded blue, but the mailbox was painted a bright, cherry red.

Trent followed Carlos up the cracked driveway. "So, how do you want to do this, Carlos?"

Carlos turned slightly to look at him and gave one of his smiles. "With charm, Trent, with complete charm."

Trent nodded and motioned to the door. "Go right ahead."

Carlos rang the bell and put on one of his best charming smiles that would make many women's hearts flutter.

"Yes?" Jackie's red hair reached to her shoulders.

"Hello, I'm Carlos and this is Trent."

Jackie crossed her arms and stared at Carlos as though he had just crawled out of a compost pile. "I am not talking to any reporters."

Carlos shook his head and chuckled. "No, no we are not reporters. We are private investigators looking into the case. We got your address from Bess."

"Fine. I will tell you what I told the police. I heard some bangs and a loud thump from the office. When I got there, I found that horrible man leaning over Father Darren."

"Was Father Darren having trouble with anyone?"

"Yes, with the homeless man that killed him."

"Anyone else?" Carlos asked his smile losing its intense charm.

Her hazel eyes narrowed as she looked at each of them in turn. "Why are you asking me all of this? The police caught the killer."

Trent glanced at Carlos and could tell that his old friend was getting annoyed. Trent looked at Jackie. "Ok. Did Father Darren have trouble with anyone else besides the homeless man?"

Jackie glared at Trent as though he had asked an obscene question. "Not that I know of. I want you to leave. Now!"

"All right, all right. We're going." Carlos raised his hands in front of him like a shield and backed up as Jackie went back inside and slammed the door.

Trent heard the door latch as he looked at Carlos.

"We didn't gain any useful information," Carlos said as he turned and headed back to the car with Trent walking next to him.

"Yes, Carlos, I noticed."

"What now?"

"We dig deeper," Trent said as he got into the car. He could hear his friend grumbling underneath his breath as he sat down and started the car. Trent could tell that this case was bothering Carlos and hoped that it would be resolved soon.

* * *

Trent and Carlos walked into Thunder Investigations and greeted Kim who was sitting at her desk.

Kim swung her chair to face them. "Hey. What did you guys find out?"

Carlos frowned. "Nothing. Miss Foreman didn't have anything to give us."

"Ok," Kim said as she stood up and came around her desk. "Time to have a meeting."

"A meeting about what?" Trent asked.

"About the case. We can review what information we have and discuss theories."

"Kim, I hate to repeat myself, but we have nothing."

"Carlos, sit down, stop being negative." Kim waited while Trent and Carlos pulled up chairs before she began. "Ok, so she found Charlie next to the priest's body."

Trent looked at Kim and saw that she was waiting for one of them to say something. "Charlie doesn't remember anything."

"He hadn't been knocked out," Kim replied.

"Either he was drugged or the sight of seeing the dead priest caused him to block out what happened," Carlos replied his voice sharp.

"Well, Ryan will have his blood tested, so maybe something will show up there. All we have to do is find out who wanted Father Darren killed."

Trent saw Carlos frown and saw creases at the corners of his eyes appear which was a well-known sign to Trent that he was getting frustrated.

"Who would want to kill a priest?" Kim asked.

Carlos gave her a look reminding him of the countless scandals and stories that had become known in the past few years. Trent nodded and sighed as he looked at Kim who seemed to be losing her excitement about throwing ideas around.

"Ok. Kim, can you dig deeper into Father Darren's past and see if you can find anything?" Trent asked politely.

Kim nodded as she went back to her chair and started her search for information.

"Can you also look into Jackie Foreman as well?" Carlos asked.

Trent looked at him with raised eyebrows. "You don't think she's telling the truth?"

"Nope. Tomorrow, we can interview the people who worked with Father Darren at the soup kitchen and the people at the church. Someone has to know something."

"Yeah, and we can find out who was there that night."

"I wonder if they will be just as helpful as Miss Foreman," Carlos said sarcastically as he stood up and went toward the office that he shared with Trent.

Trent nodded and looked out the window at the darkening skyline. He wanted his mind to remain focused on the case but he couldn't push old memories aside for those that were linked to the present.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 8: Church

The sun was just high enough above the horizon for the church to cast a shadow over the soup kitchen. The early morning had started off fairly cool which was a relief since for the past month the city had been soaked with sweat and the buzzing sound of air conditioners trying to keep houses and businesses cool.

Carlos looked over at his best friend and saw him staring off into the distance. He wondered what was going through his mind. Trent still hadn't told him what was bothering him. He could feel the twitch in his brain wanting to know but he didn't know how to bring up the subject.

At first sight of the crucifix hanging over two solid wood doors, the first thought that entered his mind was his grandmother, sitting on the porch fingering her rosary. She would attend church every Sunday and religious holidays without fail. She would light candles for not only her family and close friends, but also even those she had heard about on the television, the newspaper or through a friend.

Her deep, dark caramel eyes would see every worry, fear and happy moment of your life with just one look. She had never pushed her beliefs on anyone, even her own family, but she would make certain that his or her spiritual side was strong.

They entered the main entrance and followed the sign to the offices. They met an auburn haired nun with an easy smile sitting behind a simple desk. She looked up at them with sparkling, wise eyes. "Good morning, gentlemen. How may I help you today?"

Trent returned the smile. "Good morning, we are here to speak with Father O'Hara. We have an appointment with him for eight o'clock."

"Yes. Mr. Sandoval? Mr. Malloy?" She said and when they nodded, she hit one of the buttons on the phone. "Father O'Hara, Mr. Malloy and Mr. Sandoval are here to speak with you."

"_Thank you, Sister Grace, you may send them in."_

The priest stood as they entered, came around the desk and shook their hands. Father O'Hara stood several inches below six feet, but his authoritative presence made him seem bigger. His robe and collar was pressed smooth and a simple silver cross

The setup of an office always gave deep insight into the person who sat behind the desk. It was neat and efficient, without a random scrap of paper or a disorderly stack of folders. The pictures portrayed religious figures and he had a few religious pieces on his desk. The view from the large window showed a colorful garden and a bright blue sky.

"There is a cool breeze in the air so I believe it would be wonderful to walk as we talk."

The priest allowed them to exit the office first. He shut his office door firmly and turned to his assistant.

"We shouldn't be too long, Sister Grace. So, if there are any calls I will return them back shortly."

They followed the priest out into a blooming garden that provided ample shade on two sides. There were several fountains but the largest one portrayed the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus at its center. A hedge, that was six feet tall created a natural wall for the outdoor walkway. Flowers of all sorts filled the garden with a variety of colors and fragrances.

"So, Father O'Hara, did you know Father Stunner well?"

"He came to us about three years ago. Always doing right by people and God."

Carlos nodded as the priest talked about the slain priest. He looked over at Trent and saw that he was staring at a bed of flowers with a painful look in his eyes.

Carlos focused back on the priest, making a mental note to figure out what was going on with Trent later. "Did you notice if anyone didn't care for him?"

"He had new thoughts and ideas but he was a kind soul and faithful in God."

He was about to ask another question a priest with bright blonde hair walked into the garden and towards them. Carlos thought the priest was purposely heading for them, but he could see that the priest was muttering to himself and not even looking in their direction.

"Good morning, Father John, if we could have a moment of your time," said Father O'Hara clasping his hands together and letting them rest against his robe.

The priest stopped and looked at them, blinking eyes the color of dark jade, seeming to realize that he wasn't alone.

"This is Father John Pearse he oversees the financial aspects of the Church. Father Pearse, this is Trent Malloy and Carlos Sandoval."

"Yes, yes how do you do?" Father Pearse said as he smiled distractedly. "I must be on my way. I have to check the supply delivery." Father Pearse walked around them and to the other side of the hedge.

Carlos watched the priest's head bob up and down behind the tall hedge that was easily six feet high, so the priest had to be at least six-foot-three.

"Is there anyone here that Father Darren was close too?" Trent asked.

"As I have said, he was liked by everyone and wasn't really close to anyone. If you wish to speak with anyone else here, let me know and I will have them brought to you."

"Thank you. We will take you up on your offer. We wish to speak with everyone."

"Very well. I shall have Sister Grace prepare a room for you to use for your interviews."

Father O'Hara motioned for them to follow him. As they left the garden, Carlos glanced over at Trent and saw that his friend was looking at the garden. He really needed to find out what was going on with his friend, whether Trent wanted to tell him or not.

* * *

After interviewing most of the residents and workers at the church, the sun was at its highest point in the sky, but thankfully, the cool breeze from the morning remained.

They were currently missing that cool breeze as they stood next to the second row of pews from the altar and watched as people lighted the white candles, bowing their heads in prayer. He smelled the hot wax as it melted and he could feel the heat from the flames that were gentle and familiar warmth.

Carlos thought about lighting a candle for Charlie. He walked up, waited a moment for his turn. He picked up a lighted candle, tipped it and the wick from the other candle flashed and started to burn steadily. He bent his head and said a silent prayer.

He turned and saw Trent staring at the candles, the flames flickering on his face and in his troubled eyes.

They left the church and headed toward the parking lot. Carlos was disappointed that they had no information that would help Charlie.

"We need to see what Kim has found out on the background checks," Carlos said hopefully.

Trent nodded. "We have to figure out what our next step is going to be to find the killer."

Carlos could feel his stomach rumbling and wondered if Trent could hear it. "Well, I think our next step is something to eat and have a cold beer."

Trent nodded as he went to the car and opened the door. Carlos pulled the keys out of his pocket and watched his friend get into the car, his face rigid but his eyes shone with emotion.

Carlos decided that he would ask Trent later about why he had been so distant lately. He finally determined that the look in Trent's eyes had been guilt. All he had to do now is figure out how to get his friend to talk about what was bothering him.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 9: Interviews

Trent opened the door and stepped into Thunder Investigations. The evening sun brought in a few streaks of natural light through the windows angled in such a way that it illuminated the empty chair behind Kim's desk. He had a feeling that she was currently downstairs talking with Butch. He hoped that Kim had found something, but he doubted it because if she had, she would have called them.

Carlos followed him in but kept a hand on the open door his eyes scanning the room.

"Kim, are you here?" Carlos asked loudly and when there was no response, he looked at Trent. "Well, Kim must be downstairs."

"Yeah," Trent said as he headed to the office he shared with Carlos.

"I'm going to go see if she has anything."

Trent turned and saw that Carlos was waiting at the door. "I'll be down in a minute."

A hesitant look flickered in Carlos' eyes, as he stood framed in the doorway.

Trent was about say something but Carlos just nodded and closed the door behind him.

He walked into his office and sighed as he stared at his desk staring blindly at the files, desk calendar and a novelty mug filled with pencils and pens that Kim had given him.

He couldn't keep his thoughts out of the past enough to focus on the present. Flickering memories of his childhood and that flower filled house continued to become foremost in his mind. He knew that he couldn't control the inquisitive nature of each of his friends. Eventually they would find a way to get the information out of him.

He sat down at his desk and turned on his computer. Within a few clicks of the mouse, an old article appeared on the screen. He didn't have to read the article to know who, what, when, where, or how. The only thing that the article never revealed was the why because no one knew the reason. Of course, there had many several theories brought forth by different people.

Trent closed the article, rubbed his eyes, and rolled his neck trying to get out the kinks. He stood up, knowing that torturing himself was causing the mental block that he was having with the case.

He left the office, shut off the lights, locked the doors and headed downstairs into the bar. The crowd was loud as everyone was talking over the music. On the large screen television was a pretty, blond reporter from the local news standing in front of a gas station talking about the ever-rising price of gasoline.

He waved to Butch, who was standing behind the bar serving a couple of regulars their usual. He continued deeper into the bar and saw Nancy, Kim and Carlos sitting at a table talking and laughing.

"Hey, Nancy. Hey, Kim. Kim, how are the background checks going?" Trent asked taking a seat in between Carlos and Kim, facing Nancy.

Kim couldn't hide the disappointment in her eyes. "I didn't find out anything significant, yet but I will soon Trent. Very soon."

"How did the interviews go today?" Nancy asked.

"Nothing, we have absolutely nothing," Carlos replied his face darkening at the recent failure.

"Maybe you aren't asking the right questions or the right people," Butch said as he set a pitcher of beer and three glasses down on the table next to a plate of nachos.

"Maybe people who attend the church?" Kim suggested.

Carlos shook his head, frustration written all over his face. "That would be a long list and would take a long time but that is what detective work is all about but it would be better if we could find something to point us in the right direction."

"Why don't you ask the people who go to the soup kitchen. Maybe they hear things that others do not." Nancy said, grabbing a nacho.

"That's a good idea. We'll go back tomorrow," Carlos said, grabbing a nacho and taking a sip of beer, a spark coming back into his eyes.

Trent grabbed his beer and nodded, wondering if they would find any information.

* * *

Trent sighed as he waited for Carlos to finish with what was obliviously another unproductive conversation and waste of time by the look on his friend's face. The next homeless man they spoke to didn't have much to give them except point them in the direction of someone who may or may not know something.

The sun shone down on them, but thankfully, a nice breeze kept them cool. Unfortunately, Trent could tell that Carlos was about to loose his cool if nothing useful would come to them soon.

Carlos handed the man standing before him a sandwich. Dirty fingers took the food as Carlos asked him about Charlie.

"Oh, poor Charlie, he got in trouble. Bad trouble. Course, there is no good trouble."

Trent leaned against the brick building on the right side of the alley. Folding his arms, he looked at Carlos, shook his head and waited.

Carlos's eyebrows came together as he focused on the man who had already started ate half of the sandwich. "Grant, Marcus told us that you saw something. You saw Father Darren with someone."

Grant nodded and swallowed the rest of the sandwich. "Father Darren is gone. Is gone with God now."

"Yes, he is. Did you see Father Darren with someone before he left to be with God?"

Grant wiped his hands on his pants and looked at Carlos, then at Trent with unfocused green eyes. "Yes, yes. I saw Father Darren with a bird."

"A bird? You saw him with a bird?"

Grant nodded again. "Yes, a bright, yellow bird."

Carlos smiled, thanked Grant and gave him another sandwich and a couple bottles of water.

"So, I guess we have to go to the _street _and find a _yellow bird_," Carlos said sarcastically as they left the alley. They had been interviewing people for hours and Grant had been the only lead.

"Well, that was a bust," Trent said his gaze lingered on the other dozen homeless people who currently on this street. Trent could tell that Carlos was looking at the people too.

"We have to try harder. You and I both know that Charlie would never hurt anyone."

"Right now, I'm not so certain that he didn't."

"Trent!" Carlos exclaimed grabbing his friend's shoulder.

"Carlos, as much as I don't want to say this, but all of the evidence is pointing us right at Charlie. All of these interviews, hasn't lead to anything but Big Bird."

Carlos released his shoulder. "Then we are not looking hard enough. We still have to wait and see what Kim has found."

"If she can find anything, Carlos. She has been looking and hasn't found anything."

"Look, Carlos. I know how hard this is for you because he saved your life, but sometimes bad things happen."

"I'm going to go talk to more people. I'll see you later."

Trent sighed as he watched Carlos head back toward the Holy Kitchen. He hadn't wanted the words to come out, but he knew that his friend had to hear them.

* * *

guardianM3: Thanks for all the reviews so far. Sorry, about the long wait. I've been busy.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 10: Exceptions

The sun cast massive waves of heat down on the street. The nice breeze that had accompanied the sun the day before was gone. Nancy had her hair tied up to keep it off her neck and a ball cap on her head to keep the sun out of her eyes.

She walked up the stairs and entered Thunder Investigations. She stood a moment allowing her body to adjust to the air-conditioned air. She saw that Kim wasn't at her desk, but Trent's door was slightly ajar. She knew that Trent was there, but not Carlos, because Kim had mentioned that Carlos owed her lunch.

She unknowingly steeled her shoulders, walked up to the door and knocked lightly. She heard a limited response, opened the door and saw Trent sitting at his desk, his eyes fixed on the computer monitor. "Good afternoon, Trent."

He looked up at her, a look in his eyes that she couldn't quite determine. "Hey, Nancy. Your father is downstairs."

She wondered if this was the right moment to talk to Trent since it didn't seem to want her there but she would loose her nerve if she turned around and walked out the door. "I know that Trent."

"Right," Trent responded his attention clearly on her and waiting for her to speak.

She interlaced her fingers and then broke them apart unknowingly. She saw his eyes on her hands and knew what she had been doing. She placed her hands firmly on her sides. She cleared her throat. "I wanted to ask you if I could learn karate."

"No problem. I can get you into a class tomorrow if you want."

"Well, see that's the thing, I don't want to take one of your classes. I want to learn one on one. I learn better that way. Unless of course you don't make exceptions, which is fine and I won't bother to ask you again." She stopped once she realized she was babbling.

"Actually, Nancy, I do make exceptions. I'll see what times Tommy has available."

"Oh, but I thought you taught the karate classes."

"Yes, I do, but Tommy teaches most of the time since I'm busy with Thunder Investigations."

"Yes, well, no offense to your brother, but I would feel more comfortable learning karate from you. It's just I don't know Tommy well and I'm sure he's a good teacher, but I want to learn from you."

"I can make exceptions, especially for a friend."

"Don't you mean for the daughter of one of your friends?"

"Well, you are a daughter of one of my friends, but I always considered you a friend."

"I'm glad to hear that, Trent." A smile came to her lips.

She turned to leave but she quickly spun around to face him. "Another thing, you have to promise me is that you won't tell my father."

His right eyebrow rose but he nodded in agreement. "I promise."

They talked for a few minutes to figure out when they could meet at Thunder Karate for her first lesson. Once they figured out the day and time, she thanked him profusely before she headed into the reception area. When she reached the outside door, she breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't known if she could have asked Trent for such a large favor.

She heard from Kim that Carlos and Trent had a disagreement the day before. She hadn't heard the details, but she wondered if it had something to do with whatever was going on with Trent.

She walked down the stairs and opened the door to the cool and darker interior of Uppercuts. She stepped inside and nearly ran into Butch who was carrying a couple pitchers of beer to a table filled with regulars.

"Hey, Butch," Nancy greeted him a warm smile when he returned to the bar, carrying a tray filled with dirty glasses.

"How's the job hunt going?" He said as he handed the tray to Susan who took it into the kitchen.

"Working on it."

"You can always work here for a little while until you find a job."

Nancy smiled but shook her head. "I've applied to three places and I have an interview tomorrow. I'll be fine."

Butch grabbed a clean towel and started wiping the bar. "So, what do you want to eat today?"

"I'll have the chili."

"Coming right up."

Nancy went to sit at a table to wait for her order of chili. She studied the people around her. Eating, drinking, talking loudly over the music or watching the television above the bar.

Her mind continued to drift back towards the upcoming karate lesson with Trent. She wasn't certain what to expect, but she hoped that it wouldn't end up being a disaster.

The death of her mother and the murder of her fiancé had changed her life. Good things had happened to her, such as finding her father and making new friends. It had been a struggle trying to embrace her new life.

She smelled the spicy chili before she saw Butch walking toward her the steaming bowl in one hand and an ice-cold soda in the other.

"Here you are."

"Since when do you serve food?" She teased once he had set the bowl down in front of her, along with a spoon that came out of thin air.

"True, I mostly serve beer, but you are the exception when it comes to anything else."

She could see that him saying something so heartfelt when their father-daughter relationship was like trying to make a pie with only two apples when you really needed about six.

Her hand instinctively went onto his arm.

He rubbed the back of his neck with his free arm and he cleared his throat.

She removed her hand and looked at the bowl of chili. She looked at him and saw him open his mouth to say something.

"Hey, Butch, can we get a refill?" An older man with salt and pepper hair raised a beer glass.

"Yeah, be right there, Danny."

She watched as Butch went to the bar and filled a pitcher of beer. He walked over to Danny and refilled his glass, as well as the others sitting at the table. He stood talking and laughing with the entire table for several minutes before he left to serve another patron.

She looked at her bowl of chili and picked up the spoon. She swirled the spoon in the combination of beans, pieces of onion, large chunks of meat and a mixture of delicious spices. The swirling of the chili reminded her of the swirling of thoughts that she couldn't stop. All of those thoughts focused on one person and that was Trent.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off it.

* * *

Chapter 11: Bright, Yellow Bird

Carlos unwrapped the stick of gum and put it in his mouth. He crumbled the wrapper and put it in his pocket to throw it out later. He frowned as he studied the people on the street around the soup kitchen.

He chewed the gum, wondering if today would bring any leads. He felt the urge to prove Charlie's innocence as soon as possible. Trent's diminishing faith in the case, in Charlie, was ticking him off. Usually it was his friend's faith of the good in people that kept him from succumbing to the negative aspect of his personality.

He saw the same people enter and leave the kitchen that he had seen yesterday. He had already spoken to each of them and they had no information for him. There had to be someone or something that would lead him to the real killer. It was always the search for witnesses and clues that rattled his patience.

After several hours of watching familiar people enter and leave the building, he realized that it was time for lunch. He had lost a bet several days ago to Kim, so he had to take her to lunch at a new bistro.

He arrived at the bistro in ten minutes and walked to the already occupied table where Kim had already ordered herself a drink and was looking at her watch.

She looked up and raised an annoyed eyebrow. "Hi, Carlos. You are late."

"Hi, Kim. I am only late by a few minutes."

"True, you are getting better about being on time. When you arrive five minutes early for things, then I won't bother you about your punctuality."

Carlos sat down just as a pretty waitress came to the table. "Hello, I'm Sandy. I'll be your server today. Would you like something to drink?" She smiled widely and looked at Carlos with flirtatious eyes.

"Hi. I'll take a coffee with creamer, please," Carlos said as he grabbed a menu and perused it while the waitress went to get his drink.

"Did you even look at her?"

"Huh? Yeah. Sure."

"Uh. Carlos, are you okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine, Kim." He smiled and looked over the menu at her.

Before she could respond, Sandy returned with Carlos' coffee and creamer. She whipped out a pencil, pad and asked what they wanted.

He ordered scalloped potatoes, small salad and mustard pork chops. Kim ordered a small salad, a turkey sandwich on ciabatta bread and a small cup of onion soup.

Lately, Kim had been trying to get him to talk to Trent about their argument and what had been bothering his friend for weeks. Surprisingly, Trent was the only thing that Kim didn't talk about while they ate.

He ate as quickly as he could without seeming rude and told her that he had to get back to work. He didn't have to look at her to see the narrowed eyes and daggers firing at him as he left the restaurant.

He parked his Durango in the shade of a Texas ash tree. He turned his head and saw it. A bright, yellow bird. A smile came to his lips as his eyes narrowed with determination.

He stepped out of his vehicle and casually walked over to a woman with copper hair, a shade only obtained through a box. "Hello, ma'am can I have a few moments of your time?"

The woman turned around clutching her purse and holding car keys in her other hand. "Yes?"

He could hear the nervousness in her voice and didn't have to see her eyes scanning the surrounding area for someone to help her if he decided to kidnap her or perhaps, some sort of dark purpose about him was going through her mind.

He gave her a reassuring smile loaded with charm. "I'm Carlos Sandoval. I'm a private investigator." He showed her his badge and gave her a business card.

"I'm Sally," she replied nervously slipping his business card into her purse.

It took a second for Carlos to decide how he was going to interview her and he decided that being straight and honest was going to be the best way, considering she had the typical deer-in-the-headlights look.

"A witness told me that they saw you arguing with Father Darren." He purposely remained vague so it would seem that he had a more credible witness than a homeless man who had seen a big, yellow bird arguing with the priest.

He could see her hands tighten even more on her purse and knew that he did have the right person.

"I've spoken with Father Darren on numerous occasions. I am a member of the church."

"All right. Reasonable answer, but my witness says you were arguing with the Father not long before his murder."

"I don't know why you are talking to me. The police have the murderer."

"I believe that the person responsible for Father Darren's murder is still out there and the police have the wrong man." He held his ground, keeping his eyes on hers.

She looked away, lifted a delicate, manicured hand to brush her hair out of her green eyes. "It was a few days before and Father Darren and I were standing next to my car in the parking lot."

"What was it about?" He waited, keeping his eyes on hers, letting her know that he would be unrelenting.

"I've been having an affair with another church member. We are both married, but we both are unhappy with our spouses."

"And Father Darren found out about it?"

"Yes. He saw us together and he just knew."

"And you didn't want him to tell anyone about it?"

"He promised that he wouldn't tell anyone. All he did was lecture me about coming clean about the affair and that it would save my soul. I didn't have a reason to kill him because he wasn't going to tell my husband."

"What about the man you were seeing?"

"Father Darren spoke to him as well and he did tell his wife. They are going to therapy to work on their marriage."

He asked a couple more questions and found out that her alibi was a book club. Once he had all of the names and numbers of the book club, he thanked her and told her to have a good day. He watched as she adjusted the strap of her purse on her shoulder and walked quickly away from him. He headed to his car, intent on confirming her alibi.

* * *

"So it was Big Bird?" Butch asked as he took a sip of coffee.

"Yes, it was a bright because the sun was shining in the car, lighting up the window decal."

"Interesting," Kim replied as she handed Carlos a cup of coffee.

"Man, if my grandmother had been in that room with that woman, she would have had her praying for forgiveness and cleaning the entire church from top to bottom." He cleared his throat because the look on Butch's face told him to focus on the case.

"Ok, so she didn't do it," Kim said taking a seat in her chair.

"Nope. She was at a book club. I checked. Five women confirmed her whereabouts."

"What's the next step?" Kim asked.

He sighed as he rubbed his right temple, feeling the beginning of a headache coming on. "I will just have to go back and see what else I can find."

Butch leaned on Kim's desk. "You should take Trent with you."

"Trent isn't interested."

"He is your friend and just because you two disagree on something doesn't mean that you leave the other standing in the ring alone."

"Do you ever get tired of your boxing analogies?"

Butch grinned. "No."

"I could go with you," Kim suggested eagerly.

"Actually, Kim, it might be a good idea if it were just Carlos and Trent."

"Right. I am needed at the office so I can try to find something with my research."

He couldn't help but detect the anger and frustration in her voice. "Have you found anything?"

Kim frowned and stood up from her desk. "Not yet, but I've got my informants looking out for any connections."

He looked at her with surprise. "You have informants?"

"Of course. Don't you? I need to put some more creamer in this coffee."

He watched her walk to the little kitchen area and turned to look at Butch. "Is she serious?"

"Yup," Butch replied with a smile as he drank more coffee.

Carlos shook his head hoping that this case would break open and so would Trent.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 12: His Case

Ryan took a sip of coffee and slammed the mug back onto the desk. The coffee was lukewarm and tasted as though the coffee had been made with a sweat sock liner. His patience was getting as bad as the coffee and he wondered if it was some kind of conspiracy against him.

"Here you are, Detective," the clerk said, a woman wearing a white blouse and a medium length red skirt. He thought her name was Sara or Sandra or something like that but he accepted the file with a nod and opened it when she had walked away.

He scanned the autopsy report which was on top and then the forensics report. The priest had been killed with two strikes to the head with a blunt, heavy object. The object, found with the priest's blood and brain matter on it was a bronze statuette of a cross that sat on a desk in the office in the soup kitchen. They also matched the fingerprints to the bum, Charlie.

Charlie's blood had been clean for alcohol and the usual drugs. There was blood on the bum's clothes that matched the priest's blood type but DNA testing of the blood would take at least three more weeks.

Detective Ryan frowned at the news. His new case wasn't as closed up as he wanted. He wanted to call the lab and yell at them for taking a long time to get him the reports and he wanted to order them to move up the DNA testing. He knew that if he called them, they would push everything back long enough just to annoy him.

He wondered why it had taken so long for him to get the reports. It seemed that every time he tried to gather all of the information on this case, elaborate detours would pop up out of nowhere.

He always followed the evidence and the motives for the reason people kill. Now, he was getting a feeling in his gut that he attributed to the horrible coffee. He didn't believe in the 'sixth sense' or 'gut feeling' nonsense that some cops claimed to use to solve cases. There just seemed to be _something_ off about this case.

Ryan was in his own thoughts as uniform with his rookie partner walked by his desk. Normally, he would block it out but for some reason, his ears tuned in.

The dark haired rookie with what Ryan would consider a baby face that would be better suited for a school teacher than a cop punched the other fair haired cop on the arm.

"What are you talking about?"

"She's the one. You do know that clerk, Susan, used to hang out with Carlos Sandoval."

The fair haired cop followed the baby faced cop to a desk a few over from Ryan's desk. "Yeah, I always wondered if he had ever dated her."

Ryan shuffled some paperwork on his desk as he leaned to his right to listen.

"Knowing Sandoval, I'm sure that he didn't."

"Why do you say that?"

He remembered the fair haired cop's name was Officer Fall but he still couldn't remember the baby faced cop and he couldn't see his name on his uniform.

"She's still friends with him."

He leaned back toward his desk, not wanting the officers to know he had been listening.

"Will you leave the paperwork for the detective so we can get to lunch."

The officer laughed and slapped his buddy on the back.

Ryan's eyes narrowed as the two officers walked away still gossiping about Sandoval and all of the women he had dated while he was at the Dallas Police Department.

He didn't have any proof but he did have a feeling. Sandoval was known to bend the rules so far that the line would almost disappear. If the former detective had done such a thing, he would make sure that interfering clown was thrown in jail and he would be the only one with the key. No one was going to mess with his case.

* * *

Ryan stared at the metal stairs that led up into Thunder Investigations as though it would lead him into hostile situation. The music and noise coming from the bar at street level indicated that it was after five and drinking time for the nine-to-fivers. He still had a lot of work to do and he didn't want to be at the station all night, so he went up those steps, opened the door and walked in to Thunder Investigations.

The office assistant, Katie or something wasn't there but Sandoval was standing in the little kitchen area pouring a cup of coffee into a mug.

"Ryan?"

Ryan walked deeper into the room and stood about seven feet from the former detective. "Sandoval, we need to have a little discussion."

Carlos put the coffee pot back into it's base and leaned against the counter. "With you, Ryan, it is never a little discussion."

Ryan ignored the remark. "You and Malloy are trying to find evidence to prove the bum's innocence when he isn't innocent."

"He is innocent until proven guilty," he replied said and then took a tentative sip of coffee.

Ryan scoffed knowing that trying to reason with the former detective. He had always detested Sandoval and know that the former detective was trying to mess with his case, the feeling intensified. He took a breath to calm down and noticed that Sandoval's partner wasn't there. "Where's Malloy?"

"He is running down some leads."

He saw the flash of anger in his eyes and a smirk broke out. "Right, Sandoval. Did you two have a spat?"

"Look, Ryan," he said not bothering to hide his irritation, "we are working on a case and so are you. It just happens to be the same case but seem to be going in different directions."

"Uh huh." He raised his arm and pointed at Sandoval. "Let me remind you, Sandoval, that if you try to impede my investigation in any way or form, I _will_ have you thrown in jail."

Ryan turned around and walked out the door, enjoying the bang of the door as he slammed it closed. He casually walked down the stairs and headed to his car. He wasn't going to allow Sandoval, his friend Malloy, or anyone else to mess with his cases. It was time to remind everyone at DPD that _he_ was the detective and not Sandoval.

* * *

guardianM3: Thanks everyone for the reviews, the follows and for the patience.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 13: A Lead

Kim banged the desk with her hands but what she really wanted to do was to throw the computer out the window. The endless searches on the church staff, the church itself and the church members had brought nothing linked to the murder of Father Darren. Even the list of the homeless that Carlos had brought her had yielded no results.

Sure, she had discovered that one of the homeless had run away at sixteen because of abuse and had been on the streets for thirty years. Another homeless man had been a veteran and hadn't adjusted to returning home. There were other sad stories that broke her heart, but nothing linked to violent acts or anything.

She was beginning to see the dark clouds closing in and that clichéd silver lining within the clouds fading away.

Looking out the window, she saw the clear, calm, and perfect day that didn't even have a trace of a cloud but not able to find anything linked to the murder of Father Darren caused her concentration to fade away. This was her failure to find something to give to Carlos, and, yes, Trent even though he had distanced himself from Carlos and Thunder Investigations for the past few days.

She thought about the mocha latte at her favorite café two blocks over. She shook her head, getting the image out of her head. She couldn't reward herself with that latte until she found _something _that would prove Charlie's innocence.

Her gaze landed on the phone and she wondered if any of her contacts had found something useful.

She nearly jumped out of her chair when the phone actually rang. She answered the phone and was both relieved and excited to hear a familiar voice.

"_Hey, Kim. How's it going_?" A male voice with a deep baritone asked.

Kim sighed. "Not good, Leo, not good." Kim had met Leo several years ago when he needed some assistance.

"_Oh. Well, I have some information for you that might be useful_."

"What is it?" Kim asked excitedly.

"_I can tell you that the church is paying a tax that it shouldn't be paying_."

"What are you talking about, Leo?"

He explained to her about the taxes that churches were excluded from due to the fact that religion and government were to be kept separate. There was also a lot of terminology that almost put her to sleep. She was glad when he had finished.

Kim lips pursed as she thought about what Leo had told her. "Then why is it paying a tax that churches are excluded from?"

"_I don't know what to tell you, Kim_."

"Thanks, Leo. I owe you one," Kim said appreciatively.

"_You're welcome. Hey, I'll keep digging for ya and see if anything else is amiss_."

She put the phone down, stood up, walked in front of her desk and did a little dance.

She looked around to make sure no one had seen her dance. She decided not to waste any more time so she ran out of the office and down the stairs to the bar where she knew Carlos was getting an early lunch.

She found him on the upper level of the bar in a back corner. She stopped the worried look that was about to appear on her face seeing that his shoulders were drooping and he barely even touched his lunch. She made sure to put a smile on her face, especially since she had some news to give to him.

"Hey, Carlos, I have some information for you," she said as she sat across from him.

He grabbed a napkin and wiped his face. His eyes rose to meet hers and she saw a little bit of hope in them.

She quickly explained what Leo had found and when she finished, he slowly nodded his head.

"Thanks Kim. I'll look into it. Thank your friend for me too."

The frown that she had held back came at full force and she knew she couldn't put a plug in her mouth to keep back what she had wanted to say for the past few days.

"You need to talk to Trent!"

He blinked a few times and she knew that he had been taken by surprise. She decided that it was best to keep him in his stunned state so she could get out everything she wanted to say.

"I am getting sick of you and Trent not talking to one another. He had been distant and brooding for weeks and now, you are doing the same thing. You are going to go to Trent and ask him what is going on with him. Then, you two can get back to work on this case. We both know that Trent would be helping you with this case because you believe in Charlie and Trent believes in your judgment."

The surprise in his eyes faded as it became frustration and anger. "Kim, I can't just go up to him and ask that. If you want to know what's wrong with him, why don't you ask him?"

"Sure you can. You two have been friends for a long time. I've only known you guys for a little while. Plus, he is one of my bosses and I don't think it would be appropriate for me to ask him about his private life."

"You always ask us about our personal lives."

"This is different and you know it. Therefore, you are going to go down to Thunder Karate and talk to him. You can use the information I got you as an excuse. Then, you ask him why he's been in a horrible mood. If you can't get him to talk, get Walker to talk to him."

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair, but she didn't back down or avert her firm gaze.

"All right, Kim. I'll do it." He grabbed his wallet and paid his bill. He stood up and walked away with a long stride.

Air rushed out of her lungs and it startled her for a second because she didn't realize that she had been holding her breath. She hoped that Carlos would be able to help Trent and not make the situation worse.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 14: Punch and Kick

Nancy watched from across the street as Trent's brother, Tommy, left Thunder Karate. She had watched the students and parents leave, and had to wait an extra twenty minutes before Tommy had come out that door. She didn't know why she was being so cautious. She guessed that she didn't want Butch to know that was taking karate lessons. She wanted to prove to him that she could take care of herself.

It had taken her a long time to accept Lyle's death but she still missed him and would always love him. As she thought about it, taking this step in learning to protect herself was something she needed to do not just for her father but also for herself.

She hesitated a moment before crossing the street, making sure to check both ways before her foot left the sidewalk.

She opened the door and stepped into the main room that had mats on the floor, and punching bags hanging from the ceiling. It didn't smell as she thought it was going too and it was actually a pleasant smell. She wondered if Trent and Tommy's mother had something to do with that.

Trent walked in from another room and smiled at her, even though it seemed to her that it was strained.

"Hi, Nancy."

"Hi, Trent. I'm ready to start."

"I'll show you where to get changed."

She followed him to the locker rooms and he handed her a gi to wear. She thanked him and quickly changed. She walked barefoot back out into the room where Trent was waiting for her.

He explained the proper way to punch and showed her a few times before he had her try it. After about fifteen minutes of practicing how to punch, he began to teach her how to kick.

Then he taught her how to do a combo punch and kick. She felt awkward and fell on her butt three times but after some patience and encouragement, she began to feel a little more confident.

After another twenty minutes of practicing, he told her that was it for the lesson for the day.

"Trent, I really appreciate you taking the time to teach me."

"It's not a problem, Nancy."

Something in his face, in his eyes

"Trent, are you ok?" She realized that she shouldn't have asked because a dark shadow crossed over his face. She wanted to kick herself and know she knew the proper way to kick.

"Yes," he replied sharply. He turned away from her, ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He turned back towards her. "I appreciate your concern, Nancy," he said in a gentler tone.

She didn't believe him but she didn't know what to say or do. She was a new friend and not his confidant.

They set a time for next week and she went to go change. As she finished putting on her clothes, she wondered if there was something, she could do to help Trent. He was teaching her karate and keeping it a secret from her father. She knew that it was a possibility that Butch could find out about the lessons and might decide never to speak to Trent again.

She shook her head, knowing that Butch would never do such a thing and she was being over-dramatic.

She lifted up her purse and went into the main room. She didn't see Trent but knew that he was still in the building and would probably be watching over her until she made it safely to her car.

She went outside and crossed the street. When she reached her car, she looked over her shoulder at Thunder Karate and wondered if Trent would talk to his friends before he wouldn't be able to be himself.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 15: Old Friend

Trent watched as Nancy left the dojo. He felt as though he was losing to the darker side of himself. He had always been the positive one even when it seemed that the evils of the world were beginning to wear his spirit down.

He turned and looked at his best friend. He could see the dark circles on his friend's eyes and his untamed hair. He wondered if it was because of the case or if he was the cause of it. He had a feeling it was a combination of both.

"What brings you by?"

"What do you think, Trent?"

"Kim, probably."

A barely visible smile appeared on his friend's lips. "Yeah and it's about the case."

Trent knew it was time to talk to his friend about what had been bothering him. "Mickey Vincent."

Carlos looked confused for a second before it clicked in his brain that his friend was finally talking him about what had been bothering him. "Mickey? The kid who killed his parents? Hasn't he been in jail for fifteen years?"

"Yes, he has been. He called me a couple of months ago. He is still claiming that he is innocent."

He hadn't thought about Mickey Vincent in about twelve years, but that one phone call brought everything back like a kick to the head. Mickey had been addicted to drugs, but with his help, Mickey was getting the help he needed. When Mickey's parents were murdered, Trent had been there to support him. Then, when the police had discovered evidence that he had killed his parents, he had gone to Trent and claimed his innocence. He believed his friend.

It was during the trial that he had discovered his friend's true nature. He shook his head and focused on the present, trying to leave those memories in the past, where they belonged.

He looked at Carlos knowing that his friend understood what had been happening. He just didn't know how much his jump back into the past had affected their friendship.

"Well, anyway. One of Kim's contacts found something interesting."

He withheld a smile knowing that his old friend knew that he wanted the subject changed. "What's that?"

"The church is paying taxes that a church wouldn't be paying."

"Interesting. Let's go to the church in the morning and speak with Father Pearse."

"Sounds like a plan. Let's head to Uppercuts and have a couple of beers. I'm buying."

"Give me a few."

He went to the locker room to change. He felt lighter and more in control than he had since getting that phone call. He didn't know why he had hidden the call from his friend.

* * *

Trent followed Carlos into the bar and wasn't surprised to see Kim and Butch sitting at their usual table. He was surprised to see Ranger Walker sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in front of him.

"Walker, what are you doing here?" Carlos asked taking a seat.

"Just visiting."

He could tell that his teacher was looking at him closely.

"Well, I have to get back to work."

"Uh, Walker. Why are you going so soon?" Kim asked looking pointedly at Trent.

He held back a smile as Walker put on his hat.

"I've enjoyed visiting but I can see that Trent and Carlos are ready to get back to work. Have a good evening."

"So, you told Carlos."

"What did I tell him, Kim?"

"I'm going to get another drink and when I get back, we are going to have a long discussion," Kim said as she stood up.

He watched her walk to the bar, saw that she was mumbling and gesturing with her hands. He looked at his friends who had large grins on their faces.

"Kim asked Walker here, didn't she?"

Butch nodded and took a drink of water while Carlos drank some of the foamy beer.

"I'm in trouble."

Carlos and Butch looked at each other and then back at him, nodded their heads in unison. He took a drink of beer and tried to think of a way out of the situation.

* * *

guardianM3: Thanks to everyone who reads this story and a big thanks to those who take the time to review.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 16: Taking A Shot

Carlos opened the door and stepped out of his Durango. He smiled when the passenger door opened and his partner stepped out. It seemed like the universe had finally realigned itself back to the correct position.

His phone rang and he reached into his pocket and answered.

"Hey, Kim what's up?"

He listened to Kim who was speaking rapidly.

"Really? Ok thanks." He smiled as he said good-bye and ended the call.

Trent looked at him. "What's up?"

"Kim just found out some interesting news."

"What is it, Carlos?" His fair-haired partner asked not bothering to hide his curiosity.

"You'll see."

He didn't have to look at his friend to know that he was shaking his head.

He went door and held it open for Trent. He waved him in dramatically. His grin widened when his friend smiled and shook his head even more. He could feel the stress and frustration leave him.

"Good morning, Mr. Malloy and Mr. Sandoval. Father O'Hara is in a meeting."

"Good morning, Sister Grace. We are not here to see Father O'Hara, but we are here to see Father Pearse."

"He's in his office. I'll let him know that you are here to see him."

"Good morning, Father Pearse."

"Good morning."

He took note of the Father's disheveled hair and the worry lines at the corner of his eyes. He wondered if guilt was getting to him.

"So, you like to gamble on professional and college football. Plus, you like online poker. You needed money so you decided to get creative with the Church's funds." He decided that he was tired of the games and decided to ask right out, he could tell that he had surprised not only the priest, but also his partner. He slightly shrugged his shoulders at his partner.

Father Pearse paled considerably and it took a minute for him to find his voice. "How did you find out?"

"We have friend who's good with computers," Trent replied.

"Father Darren found out. Told you to come forward and you killed him to keep it a secret."

"No, Mr. Sandoval, I would never harm anyone. Father Darren never found out about the money that I stole."

Father Pearse sighed. "Father Darren suspected that something was going on with me. He was trying to get me to tell him."

"So, you admit you stole money but you're saying that you didn't kill Father Darren?"

"Yes," Father Pearse replied.

He looked at his partner, who nodded his head. He replied with a slight nod. He agreed

"I suggest that you tell Father O'Hara about your problem."

He sighed and ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Yes, I knew that one day soon I would have to come forward and confess. Actually, Father Darren's unwavering persistence had me go and get some help. I've only been to the support group once so far. It was on the night of his murder."

The priest squared his shoulders and a light came into his eyes. "I am not going to let Father Darren down. If he were still here on Earth, he would still be trying to get me to talk to him."

Trent asked for the information on the support group.

"Have a good day, Father," Carlos said as he followed his partner to the door.

They left the priest, knowing that he wasn't the man who had murdered Father Darren. They would have Kim confirm his alibi, but they didn't have any doubts.

They walked down the hallway and walked into the empty entrance. "Ok, that was a waste of time."

"Not really, we did catch a thief. Of course, he was going to admit he had been stealing. At least we have cleared one suspect." Trent said as he stepped outside.

"Yeah, but we didn't get Father Darren's killer. I mean this is a soup kitchen and there are all of these scandals running rampant in it." He couldn't hide his frustration especially from his best friend.

They walked into the parking lot and were steps away from the car. Something tingled on the back of his neck. On instinct, Carlos pushed his partner down onto the pavement when he heard a loud crack and glass breaking.

Carlos got into a crouched position, took out his gun and waited, trying to figure out which direction the shot had come from. He heard two more shots strike the tree behind him, which made his body tense up.

"Someone just shot at us!" Carlos exclaimed, his eyes still searching the surrounding area but he didn't see anyone. His eyes jumped to some movement to his right but it was only a bird that was flying out of it's nest, frightened by the gunshots.

Several minutes passed but all they could hear was the sound of traffic down the block. "I think it's clear," Trent said as he stood up.

Carlos stood up. "I am wondering who shot at us and why?"

"Don't know about the who but it has to be connected to our current case."

"Probably."

"We are digging around a lot and someone doesn't like it."

"We are going to have to tell Kim about this."

"I think you should do it," Trent said.

"Why me?"

"She's still angry with me," he replied.

"Well, she's always angry with me," Carlos pointed out.

"So, then, it doesn't matter if you tell her about someone shooting at us."

Trent grinned as he pulled out his cell. "I'm going to call Walker."

He was surprised that he was the one who had sensed the danger. Usually Trent pushed him out of the way of on coming bullets. He heard Trent's side of the conversation and knew that they would have to wait around for evidence to be collected.

He was debating whether to call Kim, but he decided it would be better to tell her in person. Maybe it would be better to tell her on the phone, and then she wouldn't be able to do anything physical. He decided he would wait until Trent got off the phone and asked him which way would be safer.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 17: Old and Mold

Kim's eyes focused on the two standing before her desk. She sat up straighter, not wanting to stand because she didn't know what she would do if she did. It was a couple of minutes before hearing the news that she could even form words. "Someone shot at the both of you?"

"Kim, we're all right," Trent said softly and calmly.

She wanted to scream and smack both of them. Maybe then they would realize that being shot at wasn't something that happened every day. Well, it did to some people, but it shouldn't happen to her friends.

Taking several deep breaths, she looked up from her computer. "What do you want me to do?"

"Keep checking everyone at that church. Someone there is getting very nervous," Trent said as he leaned his hip against Kim's desk.

She shook her head, trying to get the images of her friends filled with bullet holes and covered in blood out of her mind. "What makes you think that it's someone at the church?"

Carlos frowned. "No one knew we were coming so it has to be someone there. We also have a gut feeling about it."

"What about the scene? Did you find anything?"

"We found the spot where the shooter took the shots, but we didn't find any casings. Whoever it was, took them with him. Trent called Walker and he got someone from forensics to collect the bullets and look for anything the shooter could've left behind."

"Ok, that would be Connie. I'll give her a call and let her know to call me first."

"You're friends with Connie?" Carlos asked.

She smiled at him as she picked up her cell phone. "Yeah."

"Well, usually after I get shot at and I have to wait for information, I like to eat. So, I am going to get some lunch." He turned and looked at her, his brown eyes calm, trying to console her.

Kim waved them away with her hand as she called Connie. She wasn't about to be placated. She was going to help find the shooter.

She watched them as they walked to the door. She didn't want to loose them. They were her family and she would do anything to help them. She spoke to Connie and told her what she wanted. Once she finished the call, she turned to her computer. She decided to go deep into the lives of those that worked at the church.

* * *

Kim was biting her fingernail, staring at the computer and scrolling through information when her cell phone went off.

She looked to see who was calling and scrambled to pick it up when she saw the name. "Hey, Connie. Thanks for getting back so quickly."

"_No problem. All right. I know you want to get right down to business. The bullets are from a sniper rifle." _

"That's the thing; I don't think the shooter missed."

"Are you saying that the shooter was sending warning shots?"

"_Yeah." _

"Thanks, I'm going to go see Trent and Carlos right now."

"_Wait, there's something else."_

She waited her foot tapping on the floor and she bit her bottom lip.

"_The bullets are old."_

"Old? How old?"

"_About twenty five years. There is also mold on the bullets."_

"Mold?"

"_Yup. I'm checking to see what kind of mold and I'm looking to see if the bullets are connected to any other cases."_

"Thanks, Connie."

"_You're welcome. I've got to let Walker know what I found too."_

She set down her phone and looked at her computer. She had a period to work with as she placed her hands on the keyboard.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being off of it.

* * *

Chapter 18: Holding Back

Butch set down the two beers and took a seat at the end of the table. He had Joe behind the bar and plenty of servers waiting on patrons, so he had time to chat with the two detectives.

Carlos quickly filled Butch in while Trent took a few sips from his beer.

"Did you tell Kim?" He asked giving them a look.

"We told Kim," Carlos said. "She held back from screaming at us."

"That's good. Anything else about the shooting?"

"Whoever it was took the bullet casings, but we were able to figure out where the shots came from by the angle. Otherwise, we have nothing until Connie gets back to us," the fair-haired detective said.

Before he could ask another question, his daughter walked up to the table, a smile erupting from her face.

"Hey, guys," she greeted.

They all returned her greeting as she took the open seat next to Trent.

He looked at his daughter and noticed that something was different with her. She hadn't changed her hair and her clothes didn't look new. He couldn't quite figure it out but he knew it would come to him.

"What's new?" Carlos asked before he took a long drink from his beer.

"I got a job!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"That's great. Where?" Trent asked.

"The library."

"You spend a lot of time in one so it's a perfect fit," Carlos said with a grin.

"I'm happy for you, Nancy," Butch said.

"I also have some other news. I'm going to being taking some night classes."

"What kind of classes?" Butch asked. It was the first time she had mentioned taking any classes and it had thrown him.

Nancy shrugged her shoulders. "They are just general classes until I figure out what I want to do."

"That's a good idea. Figure out what you are interested in doing. Find your passion. All that good stuff," Carlos said as he raised his beer and took a long drink finishing his beer.

Butch excused himself and went to check on their food order. As he made his way to the bar, he couldn't help but feel that Nancy was hiding something. At first, he had thought that getting a job had given his daughter a brighter glow about her, but it seemed as though something else was making her more confident about herself.

He spoke to Joe running the bar and then went to ask Sandy how the food was coming along. Everything was running smoothly as he headed back to the table with the food the two private investigators had ordered and a glass of water for his daughter.

When he returned, Kim was standing before the table talking rapidly.

He set the food down and pulled over a chair from an empty table.

Carlos frowned and looked bewildered. "Old and moldy bullets?"

"Well, the bullets aren't moldy there was mold _on_ them," she clarified.

He gave her a look having known what she had meant.

"Interesting. Anything matched in ballistics?" Trent asked.

"Not yet. She's still checking."

"He was smart to take the casings. Might be a pro," Trent said as looked at his plate Butch knew that his mind wasn't on his food.

"Why would a pro send us warning shots? Wouldn't he just kill us?" Carlos pointed out as he grabbed the ketchup bottle and drenched his fries.

"Kind of glad he didn't," Kim replied.

"Maybe the shooter didn't want any more blood on his hands," Nancy said taking a sip of water.

"Maybe. I'm going to find that shooter so I have to get back upstairs. See you later," Kim said as she hurried away.

A frown came to his face and his eyebrows came together as he thought about his friends' case. He was concerned about them but he knew they would always look after each other.

He was also glad that Trent and Carlos had finally talked about whatever had been bothering the fair-haired detective and it seemed that their friendship was as strong as ever. Now, he could focus on his daughter and figure out what she was hiding from him.

Butch walked up the stairs that led from the bar into Thunder Investigations. When he opened the door, he saw Kim sitting at her desk, her face so intent on the screen that she didn't see or even hear him. He closed the door softly behind him and walked up to her desk. When she still didn't realize he was there, he cleared his throat that caused her to jump.

"Sorry about that, Kim. I brought you some food." He looked over at the little kitchen and saw that the coffee pot was practically sludge. "I also brought you some fresh coffee."

"Oh thanks, Butch."

"It's two o'clock in the morning. I thought you might need something to eat since you haven't moved from that spot in over eight hours."

"Eight hours?" She asked with surprise.

"Yeah. I bet you didn't even realize that Trent and Carlos stopped up here earlier to give you food."

"Oh. Yeah, I guess they did," she replied, as she tried to hold back a yawn but it came out full force.

"I think it's time that you get some rest but I know you're not going to listen to me so here you go," he said as he placed the tray on the only open spot on the desk.

She nodded her head in thanks, grabbed the cup of coffee took a tentative sip, put it back and went back to the screen.

He went back downstairs and looked to make sure everything was in order before he left. He went to his office and grabbed his jacket that was hanging on the back of the door. His concern for his friends and his daughter had him punching back against his instincts to jump in the ring for them. He had faith in them but that didn't mean that he wouldn't get involved when he had to. He knew his daughter was hiding something from him and he didn't know how long he could hold out until he tried to find out what she was holding back.


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: The characters of, "Sons of Thunder" and "Walker Texas Ranger", are owned by Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and whoever else was involved with the creation and production of these two shows. Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made off of it.

* * *

Chapter 19: Assassin

Trent continued to encourage and direct Nancy as she threw punches and kicked the pads that he had on his hands. He tried to keep his mind on the training session, but he was waiting for a call from Kim telling him that she had cracked the case.

She stopped after an excellent high kick. "Trent, are you okay?" She asked as she placed her hand on his arm.

Her looked up into her soft, blue eyes and wondered why he felt as though he could tell her everything that he felt. He shook it off, knowing that the last few weeks had been an emotional train blasting through a brick wall and with the encouragement of his friends; he was finally laying new tracks that went around that brick wall.

He smiled. "Yeah, just got distracted for a second. I'm sorry about that."

"Not a problem, I know you have been working hard. Training me has probably taken up a lot of your time."

"No, Nancy, it hasn't," he replied truthfully.

"Okay."

The cell phone broke the moment of silence. He excused himself and ran over to his bag that contained the ringing phone. He answered and was glad to hear Kim's voice. He listened and told her that she would be right there.

He walked over to Nancy, smiling apologetically. "I have to go to the office. Is it all right if we pick this up next time?"

She smiled, but he could still see a little bit of disappointment in her eyes. "Yeah, sure."

"Thanks, Nancy. I'll make it up to you."

They went to change in their respective locker rooms and met in the main room. He held the door open for her and he followed her outside. He stopped when his brother came towards him with a gym bag in his hand.

"Hey, Tommy."

"Hey, Trent. Hi, Nancy."

"Hi, Tommy. I have to get going. I'll see you around," she said as she waved and went to her car.

"How's the training going?"

"Really well. Sorry, but I have to run too. Kim has some information on a case."

"All right, see you later."

"Later," he replied as he headed to his car, putting his bag in the back seat before he got in.

His brother came up to the open window. "Don't forget about dinner on Sunday. Mom is letting Tandy make strawberry shortcake for dessert."

"I won't forget," he replied as he started the car and pulled out into the street after he had checked to make sure it was clear.

* * *

Trent looked over at Carlos and could tell by the twitching of his foot that his impatience had started before he had arrived. He looked at Kim, knowing that she had something important about the case. When he had arrived, Carlos was sitting in the chair across from Kim's desk.

She came to stand before them, clasping her hands together and sighed.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his friend lean forward.

He turned his complete attention back to Kim when she began to speak. "Connie called me. She has some friends so she sped up the ballistics and the bullets matched several unsolved murders that started in the mid-sixties and well into the eighties."

"Several murders?" Carlos asked with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah, about two dozen and not just in the United States, in several other countries."

A deep frown came onto Trent's face. "Other countries? So are you saying that the shooter was an assassin?"

"Bingo," she said with a nod.

"An assassin who is hiding out at a church?" Trent said shaking his head.

"Why didn't the assassin just kill you guys?"

"We'll have to ask," the fair-haired investigator replied.

"Have you figured out who the assassin is yet?"

"Not quite, Carlos. Whoever it is hasn't killed anyone for almost thirty years."

"Until Father Darren," Trent pointed out.

"Kim…"

"Look for anyone who arrived at the church in the late eighties maybe early nineties and check their past. Yeah, I got it, Carlos. Now, get out of here so I can work. You guys are a pair of wonderful private investigators, but sometimes you have to leave the information gathering to the computer savvy office manager."

"Yes, ma'am," Carlos said.

"We'll be downstairs if you need us," Trent replied as he followed his partner to the door.

* * *

"An assassin?" Butch asked incredulous.

"Yeah, we're shocked too."

"She's trying to find out who it is?"

He nodded, and then took a long drink from his beer.

"She needs a break."

"You try telling her that and she'll probably melt you with one of her famous glares," Butch pointed out to Carlos.

His face-wide grin sprung onto his face. "Yeah, she probably will."

Sue, one of Butch's servers brought over their order and set it down on the table. When she had left, they theorized about the reason the assassin had retired.

* * *

Trent walked into Thunder Investigations with two large cups of coffee sitting in a cardboard tray. He shut the door and looked at the woman sitting behind the computer; face glowing by the light of the screen, her hair was unruly as tumbleweed.

He stood in front of her desk and set the cup of coffee down next to her keyboard. "Hey, Kim, I brought you a fresh cup of coffee."

"Thanks, Trent."

"Want to take a break? Take a walk and get some fresh air. Especially since you've been here all night and the sun has been up for half an hour."

Her brown eyes locked with his blue ones. "Have you spoken to Carlos since he came in here last night trying to get me out of here?"

"No, but I have a feeling that he didn't succeed from pulling you away from your mission."

"Nope. Still on it."

He heard a pinging noise coming from the computer and saw her eyes fly open when she had read whatever had appeared to her on the screen.

"Kim?" he asked cautiously

"Call Carlos. Tell him to get out of bed and get here. I have the identity of our assassin."

He didn't question her as he pulled out his phone and called his partner. The morning had not only brought a new day, but the person who had really killed Father Darren so they could free Charlie Clarke.


End file.
